Starbucks Canada launched a new drink – Nitro Cold Brew with Salted Honey Cold Foam. They have discontinued the Irish Cream Cold Brew, which sucks because it was really good.
What’s in the Starbucks Nitro Cold Brew with Salted Honey Cold Foam?
The Starbucks Nitro Cold Brew from the tap is topped with salted honey Cold Foam and a strike of Toasted Honey topping.
Taste Test
I usually enjoy their Nitro Cold Brew beverages but this one was definitely a miss. The Toasted Honey topping didn’t add too much as there wasn’t enough of it on top. The Salted Honey Cold Foam tasted bland and the honey didn’t shine through. There were only very very subtle hints of honey.
The Nitro Cold Brew was very smooth and strong, but I wanted some more sweetness to it. You can always add sweet cream or a pump of syrup balance the drink.
Final Thoughts
The Salted Honey Cold Foam wasn’t a hit for us. There wasn’t enough sweetness and it taste more like weird tangy foam. I’ll stick to their Nitro Cold Brew with Sweet Cream instead.
Another Beyond Meat collaboration in Canada and this time it’s with Starbucks. Starbucks Canada worked with Beyond Meat to develop a patty recipe uniquely designed with the Starbucks Canada customer in mind that is still consistent with their other breakfast sandwiches.
Canada is the first Starbucks market to launch a meatless breakfast sandwich. I hope other Starbucks locations add it onto their menu or have some sort of alternative to help cater to their diverse customer base.
What’s in the Beyond Meat, Cheddar and Egg Sandwich?
The Beyond Meat, Cheddar and Egg Sandwich has a plant-based patty topped with cheddar cheese and egg on an artisanal bun. The patty is made with a special blend of herbs and spices, including oregano, basil, rosemary and fennel.
Is it vegan?
Not at all. There is still cheese and egg.
Taste Test
The Moroccan-inspired English muffin was nice and crisp on the outside. It was a good ratio between the bun and the ingredients inside.
The Beyond Meat patty is always exceptional and the special blend of herbs really worked well and gave this sandwich so much flavour without it being too salty. The egg and cheddar went great as well.
I was really pleasantly surprised and would order this again. This is great for flexitarians who would like to cut out meat from their diet.
Want more plant-based options?
Starbucks Canada’s other meatless breakfast options include the Egg White & Roasted Red Pepper Sous Vide Egg Bites, Spinach, Feta & Cage-Free Egg White Wrap, classic oatmeal, and a few bakery items.
Final Thoughts
It’s great that they have added this to the Beyond Meat, Cheddar and Egg Sandwich. Sometimes it’s good to have another option in the morning.
I enjoyed this breakfast sandwich from Starbucks and better than their other breakfast options. I would get this gain.
Wendy’s Canada has released their own plant-based burger called The Plantiful Burger. A lot of other fast food chains have partnered with Beyond Meat to create their plant-based patties for them, but Wendy’s did not. I was passing by and saw this new offering, so I had to check it out for myself to see how it compares to other options out there like A&W’s Beyond Meat Burger. Tim Horton’s Beyond Meat Burger didn’t last long as it was a limited time offering which they decided not to continue.
The Plantiful is marketed for flexitarians rather than vegetarians or vegans.
Not sure how long The Plantiful will be on the menu at Wendy’s, but they have said its for a limited time only.
What’s in the Plantiful Burger?
Inside the Plantiful burger is the Plantiful patty, cheese, lettuce, tomato, pickle, onion, ketchup, and mayo on a toasted bun.
Is it vegan?
The burger is not vegan, so you would need to omit the mayo and cheese. There isn’t a guarantee that it hasn’t touched other burgers on the grill either. The ketchup also can be cross contaminated with mayo if they use the same utensil.
What’s in the Plantiful Patty?
There’s not much info about the plantiful patty that they have created.
What makes Wendy’s unique is their soft and succulent square beef patties. The Plantiful Patty is round and really lacks flavour. It’s pretty bland and doesn’t add much to the burger beside texture. The lettuce adds a nice crunch to the burger and the bun is toasted nicely too.
I’ve had a lot of plant-based patties before but this wasn’t anything special. I wouldn’t go out of my way for The Plantiful Burger. Their regular burgers are more superior and the plantiful patty just doesn’t live up to the taste.
Final Thoughts
As this burger is advertised for flexitarians, it’s too bad it’s very limiting to vegans. It would be hard to go to Wendys and get The Plantiful Burger rather than their other items.
McDonalds Canada has brought back the Spicy Habanero McChicken to their menu. Last year, they debuted 3 spicy McChicken burgers – Jalapeno, Habenero, and Ghost Pepper McChicken Sandwiches. They disappeared after the promotion but now it looks like Spicy Habanero McChicken was a hit and has returned.
Inside the burger is breaded seasoned chicken, shredded lettuce, topped with creamy Habanero sauce, on a toasted sesame bun.
We ordered this with extra sauce and there was more so we can taste it along with the seasoned McChicken patty. You need to have the extra sauce to really appreciate the added kick of the Habanero. The regular sauce amount isn’t enough.
The colour of the sauce is more yellow/orange. It has a tiny hint of spice but isn’t too powerful to cause a sweat.
I would also highly recommend getting more habanero sauce on the side so you can dunk your fries into it too.
Tim Hortons recently launched their Dream Donuts across Canada which features 3 premium donuts – Dulce de Leche Crème Dream, Strawberry Confetti Dream, and Chocolate Truffle Dream Donut.
I am so tempted to spell it doughnut, but they spell it donuts, so we will go with that spelling.
Price
Each Dream Donut retails for $1.99, but if you get a ‘Dream 6-pack’, it’s $9.99. You can find them at most Tim Hortons across Canada.
Dulce de Leche Crème Dream Donut
This is made with raised dough, dulce de leche filling, and then rolled in cinnamon sugar. Imagine like a churro but in donut form. The dulce de leche filling is a bit sweet.
Strawberry Confetti Dream Donut
This has a donut made with raised dough, strawberry fondant with buttercream swirl topped with sprinkles. It’s very visually appealing, but when you bite into it, it’s very sweet and tastes of artificial strawberries. This was the worst donut of this dream donut series.
Chocolate Truffle Dream Donut
This has cake dough, chocolate fondant topped with chocolate buttercream, and mini chocolate chips. It is the most unappealing looking donut of them all as it looks like poop, but it was the best of them all. Because everything is chocolate, it’s great for those chocolate lovers.
Final Thoughts
Overall, out of the 3 new Dream Donuts, I would probably only order the Chocolate Truffle donut again. The other two are two sweet for me and lacked the balance of flavour.
I was at McDonalds and I saw that they were offering a new Maple & Cheddar Chicken Burger. It didn’t sound new to me, but I thought I would try it anyways as we haven’t written about it.
The Maple & Cheddar Chicken Burger is served on a toasted brioche bun and comes with Canadian raised seasoned chicken breast, topped with a maple mustard sauce, a slice of cheddar cheese, crispy onions, tomato, leaf lettuce, and mayo-style sauce.
You can get this burger with a crispy chicken patty or grilled chicken patty. I just went with crispy to see how it compares to a McChicken patty. I’ve had the grilled patty before and it can be a tad dry.
Maple & Cheddar Chicken Burger was not bad at all. I think I would have preferred it with the grilled chicken patty and the pretty was a bit hard. I did enjoy the slice of cheddar compared to their processed cheese. The toasted brioche bun with sesame seed and poppy seeds was a nice touch as well.
If you’re at McDonalds and looking for something different than the usual items on the menu, their new chicken burgers are a nice option.
Subway and Beyond Meat have teamed up to create an all-new plant-based Sub, which is now available in the US and Canada. It launched in the Fall of 2019, but I didn’t realize it was in-stores until I heard about it on the radio with the debut of the Beyond Meatball Marinara sub . In true Foodology fashion, we made a trip to Subway right away.
The Beyond Meatball is a plant-based meatball made exclusively for Subway. Instead of their regular meatballs, you can get this topped with their marinara sauce, and grated parmesan cheese in a toasted sub. Of course, you can have it anyway you want, so fill it up with all the veggies that you want and on any type of bread.
You can get this plant-based bun with the regular Beyond Meatball or the Beyond Meatball Marinara. The difference is the sauce, but prices are the same. If you want to give it a try, make sure you bring your coupons too. I got some in the mail the other day, so I definitely made sure I utilized them.
Beyond Meatball Sub
In a footlong, they put 8 pieces of the Beyond Meatball, so for a 6 inch, thats 4 pieces. I loaded mine up with some sweet onion sauce, ranch sauce, and all the veggies.
The texture of the Beyond Meatball was very nice as it has a good chew to it. Similar to their regular meatballs, so that is important.
Beyond Meatball Marinara Sub
I do enjoy the Marinara sauce on the meatball subs, so the Beyond Meatball Marinara Sub was what I was most interested in trying.
I’ve actually never got it with just the basics, I asked them to load up my sub with all the veggies except for the hot peppers. I realized I shouldn’t have done that as it took away from the sub, but then again, the meatballs aren’t that large to begin with. Load it up with veggies to get more full.
Final Thoughts
Whether you go with marinara sauce for your Beyond Meatball sub is up to you. The Beyond Meatballs are a great addition to the menu and a great plant-based alternative if you are vegetarian or just wanting to have a break from meat. I’m all about the flexitarian lifestyle.
While we were in Tokyo, I was checking out McDonalds to check for items not available in North America. One of those items was the Sankaku Choco Pie available for a limited time only.
It is essentially a chocolate-filled croissant. In North America, it’s usually apple pies that you see and a few limited edition flavours. It’s the first time I’ve seen a croissant pie. The box is bright red and shaped like the Pizza Hut roof on their iconic restaurants.
The exterior has a somewhat crispiness to it, but it was very oily. Not sure if it sat around for a while, but the first few layers were crisp and then the rest was limp.
Hiding inside is like chocolate hazelnut spread similar to Nutella. It is really rich and decadent. The Sankaku Choco Pie is very messy to eat, so the crumbs will get everywhere. You’ll need to eat it carefully so it doesn’t end up on your clothes or lap.
KFC has partnered with a local Hong Kong brewery and launched their Colonel Craft Beers. You can’t find them at just any KFC in Hong Kong, they are only available at their concept store in Causeway Bay on Percival and Hennessy Road. There are 3 floors and they serve exclusive items like the Colonel Craft Beers.
There are 2 types of beer available – IPA and Pale Ale Citra. You can add it to your meal or just get it a la carte. There is no shame in just getting beer.
IPA (on tap)
The IPA is hoppy compared to the Pale Ale Citra. As it only comes on top, you must have it when you dine in. There’s no way you can do take out for this one. It even comes in a pint glass too, but you’ll have to give it back when you’re done.
Pale Ale Citra (in bottles)
The Pale Ale Citra is served in bottles and can easily be brought home for souvenirs. Thats what I did. The Pale Ale Citra is light with notes of citrus. Not too hoppy at all and it would pair really well with their fried chicken.
Crispy Hot & Spicy Chicken
The Crispy Hot & Spicy Chicken was created in collaboration with Lays, which has their hot & spicy chicken covered in potato chips. This will pair well with either beer.
Very good taste as it was very tender and juicy. The exterior was ok, but was a tad limp but probably because I didn’t eat it fresh.
You can get this at any KFC in Hong Kong.
KFC x Lay’s MAXX Deep-Ridged BBQ Flavoured Potato Chips
These MAXX Deep-Ridged BBQ Flavoured Potato Chips is another KFC and Lay’s collaboration which is available limited time only. It features the deep-ridged chips in BBQ flavour. It looks super cool, but when we ate it, it wasn’t that special at all. I much prefer kettle chips for a nice crunchy texture.
You can get this at any KFC or 7-Eleven in Hong Kong.
Final Thoughts
It’s super cool that KFC in Hong Kong is serving beer. As it is their concept store, its interesting to see the future of fast food dining and where they are trying to go.
The Pale Ale Citra is a great memento when bring something back from overseas. I ordered 5 bags of chips, 5 beers, and a few pieces of chicken to myself. I wonder what they thought I was doing. hahaha.
KFC in Hong Kong serves up Sweet Potato Balls on the menu as an add-on item for $10 HKD ($1.69 CDN). It came 9 to a box, which was an odd number, but that’s what we got.
I had to give it a try as this is not available in North American KFCs. When in Asia, I just have to try a lot of fast food items.
Each one is pretty small and it is wither purple or yellow based on the sweet potato that is used. They are deep-fried but it isn’t too oily at all.
The inside is hollow and filled with more sweet potato of the other colour. When I bit into the yellow one, there was purple inside. Vice versa.
It wasn’t too early and had a decent bounce to the item. It’s easily shared among the table or you can eat it all yourself. If you haven’t had it before, it’s worth a try.
I love love love looking at different menu items at Starbucks all over the world and I just have to try the items not available in North America. When I was in Hong Kong, I had to try the Chocolate Black Tea with Earl Grey Jelly.
Looking at the big menus behind the counter doesn’t reveal the whole menu, so I like grabbing the smaller menus on the counter to see everything that they offer. My eyes were drawn to the Frappuccino Blended Beverages section for the Chocolate Black Tea with Earl Grey Jelly.
Chocolate Black Tea with Earl Grey Jelly
The earl grey jelly is on the bottom and then filled with the chocolate black tea frappè, then the whipped cream and powder on top. In Hong Kong, they have white paper straws instead of the regular green plastic ones.
The Earl Grey jelly doesn’t taste like it too much. It was very very subtle and it mostly just added texture to the drink. Kinda like grass jelly. The Chocolate Black Tea frappe was very nice and not too sweet. I quite liked it a lot. This drink reminded me of a bubble tea.
If you’re ever in Asia and you see this on the Starbucks menu, definitely give it a try.
Starbucks has launched two new drinks this holiday season. It’s the brand new Irish Cream Cold Brew and the Canadian exclusive, Irish Cream Americano.
Since just coming back to Vancouver from our holiday vacation, I was wondering what would be the next items being launched in Canada. Great to know there is more than the usual items like Gingerbread Latte and Peppermint Mocha.
Irish Cream Cold Brew
The Irish Cream Cold Brew begins with their signature Cold Brew and Irish Cream syrup. Then it is topped with vanilla sweet cold foam and a line of cocoa powder.
I really enjoyed it! It wasn’t too sweet as the cold foam and the cold brew balanced so well. The strike of cocoa powder was noticed and went well with the flavours.
Even when it’s cold outside, there is always time for a cold beverage. I sure love it.
Irish Cream Americano
This Canadian exclusive is made with rich, caramel-like espresso, flavoured with Irish Cream syrup, topped with vanilla sweet cream cold foam and finished with a strike of cocoa powder on top. Once you leave the drink with the lid on, the cold foam and cocoa disappear into the drink. Not that much to see, but its all in the taste.
I usually don’t drink Americanos as it’s too acidic and strong, but with the added Irish Cream syrup, cold foam and the cocoa, it was great.
Final Thoughts
The flavors of vanilla and cocoa in both these drinks go well with Starbucks espresso and Cold Brew. It’s festive but gives you that caffeine kick that you need without being too sweet. Loved both versions and would get it again.
So far this year, all their special cold brew beverages have been a hit.
A&W Canada has launched plant-based nuggets by LightLife as of Monday, December 2, 2019. It’s pretty awesome to see the launch of a few different plant-based items from A&W Canada. They are definitely the leaders in the Fast Food space to bring plant-based products to the masses. It first started with the Beyond Meat Burger and then the Beyond Meat Sausage. Even though I am a meat eater, I still appreciate the options out there.
The plant-based nuggets are available for a limited time only.
There are a variety of size options:
4-piece Kids’ Pack for $5.99
6-pieces for $5.99
10-piece for $8.99
The Plant-Based Nuggets are served with A&W’s current line-up of dipping sauces: Honey Mustard, Barbecue, Sweet & Sour, and Jalapeño Ranch. But note that only Barbecue and Sweet & Sour are vegan dipping sauces. The other two are not.
Of course we went with the 10 pieces of nuggets. Our team went to A&W twice and we noticed a discrepancy between locations. Sometimes they are served in a basket and sometimes they are served in their compostable bags. Both times, we asked to dine in and also to have all the sauces. One time we got all 4 sauces and another time, we only got the vegan sauces.
Plant-Based Nugget Review
Each nugget is spherical in shape, but sometimes they have a bit of a point. Most of the time they were somewhat similar shapes.
The exterior has a good crisp exterior reminiscent of what good ol’ chicken nuggets have. In the centre, the texture reminded me of canned tuna. No worries, this is made entirely from plant-based ingredients, including peas, wheat and fava beans. The chewy texture was spot on.
I gave some to my dad and he thought it was really good ‘chicken’ nuggets. We always like to trick him into thinking its meat and sure enough it was a hit. Of course it’s not an exact replacement for chicken nuggets, but it is close enough. It’s all about the texture and the spices.
For every 6 pieces of the Plant-Based Nuggets, it has 17g of plant-based protein. Not bad at all.
Final Thoughts
It’s a great option for flexitarians like myself. A&W knocked it out of the park again with these plant-based nuggets. Are they better than regular chicken nuggets? The short answer is no. Plant-based nuggets are a good alternative and substitute if you’re trying to cut meat out of your diet.
A month ago, McDonald’s in Hong Kong launched the Black Sticky Rice Pie in stores. Black sticky rice is popularly used in Asian desserts often paired with mango and coconut milk. I’ve tried a lot of limited edition pies at McDonald’s around the world and I had to check it out. I personally find it very exciting, so I love to write reviews about these items.
The is black sticky rice pie is comprised of the classic McDonald’s handheld pie crust stuffed with a thick sticky rice filling. The exterior is nice and crisp. It pairs well with the filling inside and isn’t too thick or thin. A good ratio.
When you look at the filling, you can see the black rice inside that is essentially purple in colour. It is a touch on the sweet side, but still very enjoyable. I would definitely order this again. The size isn’t that large, so it’s easily consumed in a few bites.
KFC Hong Kong just launched a new egg tart just for Hong Kong with Red Bean and Mochi. It is Japanese-inspired because of the use of the 2 ingredients. My friend told me to check it out and I just had to as it was close to where I’m staying.
You can get it ala carte or you can get it as a set. I went with just 1 to see if I would like this or not. It’s only available for a limited time only.
They have Hokkaido Tokachi red bean and Japanese mochi in the centre of the egg tart. Then it is topped it with a marshmallow and a touch of matcha powder. I found that the marshmallow is too overpowering that it takes away from the mochi and red beans. They definitely could have used more mochi and red bean too.
This was definitely a miss and I wouldn’t order it again.
While I was in Japan, Starbucks just released their holiday frappuccino – Merry Strawberry Cake Frappuccino. It is dessert-filled crumb with sponge cake crumbs, red strawberry sauce, sponge cake-flavored base and topped with whipped cream and freeze-dried strawberry.
You can see the 3 layers in the cold version of this drink. They do have a hot version of this drink but I felt it was too weird. Some say it tastes like a Nesquick’s strawberry milk.
There are many ways to customize this drink too. You can swap the milk with soy milk if you’re lactose intolerant. You can also request more strawberry sauce at no extra charge.
I got my frappuccino as a tall with all the standard sugar and ice levels. Upon first sip, it tasted like a regular strawberry cream frappuccino with bite of the cake crumbs. The strawberry sauce is sweet.
Perhaps getting it less sweet is better, but I didn’t think this was that special of a taste unless you love strawberries.
McDonalds in Taiwan is featuring their Taro Pie. This isn’t on the regular menu, but just for a limited time only. I’ve had Sweet Taro Pie in Hawaii and it was A-M-A-Z-I-N-G!! When I saw it on the Taiwan menu, I needed to get it.
I wasn’t planning on getting it, but I was intrigued if it would be the same as the one in Hawaii. When it arrives, it comes in a generic ‘flavoured pie’ packaging as they always have rotating flavours along with the staple – Apple pie.
Taro Pie Review
The taro pie comes in one piece and its deep-fried till a golden brown on the outside. When I cut the pie in half, the inside reveals white pieces of taro with a clear off-white filling. Unlike the one in Hawaii, the colour is different and has a lot less taro.
As we took a few bites, the taro was very sweet and most of the pie was the clear off-white filling with subtle tastes of taro. Perhaps it’s a different type of taro they have. Nonetheless, it was fun to try, but I wouldn’t get it again.
It just wasn’t reminiscent of what taro is like and way too sweet. I did enjoy the deep-fried pastry as it was very crisp and delicate compared to the ones in North America.
I love finding new drinks at Starbucks around the world. When I was on my 2 week Japan trip, I saw that they were offering Yuzu Citrus & Tea on the menu. It’s a permanent item on the menu and I had to give it a try as it’s not available in North America.
You can get this drink in Short, Tall, Grande and Venti. Iced and hot options are available.
I went to their Uji, Kyoto location and it’s a fantastic space. One of the most tranquil Starbucks I’ve been to. It has even won awards for its design. If you’re ever in a foreign country, you’ll definitely find a Starbucks somewhere.
Yuzu Citrus Tea ゆず シトラス & ティー
I got my drink iced and in a tall size. I just wanted a taste without having a big cup of it. The drink has citrus fruits like pink grapefruit, and Japanese yuzu peels to create this drink. The base of the iced version is black tea, while the hot version uses English breakfast.
Upon first sip, you do set the sweetness from the citrus, and when you bite onto the yuzu peels, it give a bitter tang to the drink. It’s a pretty refreshing drink and if you’re in Japan, give it a try. I would get it less sweet next time.
As you can tell with my cup, since it’s November, all the Holiday cups has rolled out. hahaha.
